Australia Considers Court Action Against Social Media Giants Over Child Account Ban
Australia's online safety regulator has announced it is considering legal proceedings against five major social media platforms, alleging they are failing to adequately enforce laws that prohibit children under 16 from holding accounts. The platforms under scrutiny include Meta's Facebook and Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube.
Significant Compliance Concerns Identified
eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant released her first compliance report since the landmark laws took effect on December 10, revealing substantial concerns about half of the ten platforms required to remove all Australian account-holders younger than 16. While approximately five million Australian accounts have been deactivated, the report indicates that a significant number of children continue to maintain accounts, create new profiles, and bypass age verification systems.
"We have significant concerns about the compliance of half of those ten platforms," Inman Grant stated, adding that her office is gathering evidence against the five platforms that appear not to have taken "reasonable steps" to prevent young children from holding accounts.
Potential Legal Consequences and Industry Response
Australian courts could impose fines of up to 49.5 million Australian dollars (approximately $33 million) for systemic failures to comply with the legislation. The eSafety office will decide whether to initiate court action against any platform by midyear. Communications Minister Anika Wells accused the criticized platforms of deliberately undermining Australian law.
"Social media platforms are choosing to do the absolute bare minimum because they want these laws to fail," Wells told reporters. "This is the world-leading law. We're the first in the world to do it. Of course they don't want these laws to work because they want that to be a chilling effect on the dozen countries that have come out since Dec. 10 to follow Australia's step."
Platform-Specific Responses and Industry Challenges
Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, told The Associated Press it remains committed to complying with Australia's social media ban while acknowledging the broader industry challenge of accurately determining age online. Snap Inc. reported it has locked 450,000 accounts in compliance with the law and continues to lock more daily, asserting its commitment to implementing reasonable steps under the legislation.
TikTok declined to comment on Tuesday, while Alphabet Inc., which owns YouTube and Google, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Platforms not currently under investigation include Reddit, X, Kick, Threads, and Twitch.
Technical Flaws and Legal Interpretation
The eSafety report identified several "poor practices" among platforms, including allowing unlimited attempts to pass age verification methods and prompting users to try again even after declaring themselves underage. Information sciences expert Lisa Given from RMIT University noted that courts will ultimately determine what constitutes "reasonable steps" for platforms to exclude young children.
"If a tech company has said: look, we put in age assurance, we've done all these steps. That's reasonable. Even though the age assurance technologies are flawed, whose fault is that? Should they be held accountable for a piece of technology that is not 100% and likely not going to be 100% foolproof any time soon?" Given questioned. "That's really the crux of it: what the courts will deem reasonable."
The situation represents a significant test case for global social media regulation, with Australia's pioneering approach potentially influencing dozens of other countries considering similar measures to protect children online.
